Comfort
by Kylo Izanagi
Summary: They were so unused to having someone to confide in, so they didnt


I'm back with another one, i seriously can't get enough of this ship. Enjoy

Ben is a very self conscious 12 year old. But that's to be expected when your about two times bigger than most boys your age. He generally doesn't think he's good at much physically so he focuses on being a good person, and the friends that he has gotten have been good ones, genuine ones, and for that Ben is grateful. But still at times things become almost unbearable. It starts with the teasing, teasing that slowly ebbs away at his already low self esteem until he's almost too afraid to go outside at all, then it escalates to pushing, and hitting him, and he cant do anything because by time he realizes it he's already on the ground being stomped on. Even his own self doubt whispering that he was essentially useless. That the others really just took pity on him, that no one actually cared, and its then when he's at his weakest.

Beverly Marsh comes off as confident, a little rude, but genuinely a caring person. She can be cynical at times, but is usually there when you need her. From a first glance, it would seem as if she had a perfect life, but that couldn't be more wrong. Her father is abusive, and controlling showing almost no sympathy as he attacks her relentlessly. It gets to the point where she's afraid to even walk about the house, let alone go outside for something other than school. But that isn't even the worst of her problems. The other girls torture her, calling her slut and whore. Stuffing her locker full of trash, and sending death threats. It gets so bad that she resorts to smoking simply to avoid having a mental breakdown but there are times when even those don't work, and she cries, she cries for hours on end wishing she was anywhere else but there.

So for both of them being in a relationship was hard. Sure they held hands, and hung out but that was it. They were just so unused to having someone to truly confide in, the feeling is too alien to them, so they don't and its awkward. Ben sometimes catches her crying in the barrens when she thinks no one else is there, cigarette buds scattered around her as she weeps muttering things he doesn't understand. One time its particularily bad, and he knows because no one's seen her all day, and when he finds her he sees her arm riddled with whip marks shes covered in trash openly sobbing. He often tries to ask her what's wrong but she refuses to tell him saying that he shouldn't worry himself, and it hurts to think that she doesn't trust him, even more to see her going through whatever it is alone.

But he isn't the only one. Although Ben is more subtle Beverly notices when they hang out at the mall that he avoids all clothing stores, or any place with a full body mirror. How he rarely buys food for himself preferring to make sure she's eaten, and if he does get something he often just takes one bite or picks at it until she's done with hers. One time they accidentally wander into a clothing department store that happened to be going out of business, and Beverly wanted to try somethings on. And as they walked through the racks Ben kept his eyes practically glued to the ground, that was until bev called his name too see how she looked. She had her back turned as she inspected herself in the mirror.

"How do I look?" She asks, and he replies shakily with a good great, just perfect the way you are, which seem more directed at himself as if he's afraid that if he doesn't say it he'll have a mental breakdown. She asks if he's ok but he just shrugs it off, claiming that he's just nervous. She knows that she'd never judge him, she just hopes that he knows it. Patterns like these continued to appear. Underlying tension building toawards a confrontation. Even the others namely Mike started to notice how their moods worsen, they start to see less and less of them, and it only got worse from there. Time after time they would find themselves bottling up their emotions, their breakdowns becoming worse as time goes on..

Until they snap.

It happens after school. Bev is running to the Barrens, tears staining her face. Her hair is a mess, and there are fresh red welts on her fore arm. She gets there thinking she's alone, so she leans back on one of the rocks and notices a torn jacket. Ben's jacket. She gets up to go get it, but as she picks it up she's shocked to see Ben with bruises on his arm, and his shirt is torn from the side. He's crying silently. His arms folded as he breaths sporadically. He looks up once he sees Beverly walking towards him, and is speechless, desperately wanting to hide. She slides down next to him as he wipes his eyes poorly trying to get rid of the tears. At this point they are a dam ready to burst, the silence serving as the constant added pressure. Ben takes a deep breath before slowly turning to Beverly, a thin line of determination keeping him from running as he finally confronts the ongoing issue.

"Bev... who did this to you?" He inspects her arm, and she fights the urge to tear up as it stings. She looks down to the ground as if she's ashamed, but the truth is she feels vulnerable, more vulnerable than she's ever felt in her life.

"Bev please who's doing this!?" There's a slight hint of anger among the worry in his voice, and that's enough to break her. Tears fall continuously as she unravels, all the stress finally getting to her. Finally giving in she, seeks comfort in Ben, and its a new feeling as he holds her whispering to her that its ok that he's here. She tells him of all the things that have happened, and never before has Ben felt such a need to protect someone.

"And I'm just- I'm scared!" She chokes out in between sobs holding on tighter as if she's afraid he'll disappear if she doesn't. They rock back, and forth calming her down. The sounds of nature soothing them into a daze. But as Ben focuses on the gentle breeze passing by, Beverly notices the swelling bruises on Bens arms, and looks up at him. He pretends not to notice but Beverly grabs his arm causing him to hiss as the pain catches him off guard.

"Ben." Simply her saying his name is almost enough to make him give in, but he doesn't look her in the eyes attempting to hold out as long as possible. She knows what he's trying to do, and won't allow it. There's no way in hell that she's gonna sit there and let him take this, not anymore. So she moves to where he can't turn away, and she sees clearly the toll this has taken on him. His eyes are red, and stray tears flow downwards, as he feels embarrassed at how weak he is, at how little he can do.

"I just-." He says suddenly.

"I cant do anything, i'm... i'm not worth anything!" Ben sighs shakily, more tears welling up. Beverly is shaken. She wishes she could've known sooner, so that she could've done something sooner, but all she can do is reassure him that he's not, that to her, he is a safe place especially now for her to take comfort in.

Beverly slides a hand over his face, resting on his cheek. Her eyes pleading with him to believe in her, to believe in himself. The atmosphere around them changes, this feeling is new to them. They're connected on a deeper, more emotional level. And as they draw closer, for the briefest of moments the world around them fades, and it's just the two of them. Previous doubts are all washed away, the only thing that matters is how they feel now.

Their first kiss is light, light but filled with a newly found attraction. He pulls her in slightly closer, both absorbing this feeling, like an electric spark going off. So as they pull back basking in the closeness they shared, peace is found in this moment, and they can rest easy. Taking comfort in each other...

Fin

So if you enjoyed it, tell me. What parts were good, and what were some that needed work. I'm open to all criticism.

Kylo out...


End file.
